G-Eazy brings out A-listers P. Diddy, Chris Brown for second sold-out Shrine Expo Hall show

G-Eazy brings out A-listers P. Diddy, Chris Brown for second sold-out Shrine Expo Hall show
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
February 12, 2016

Almost exactly a year ago, Bay Area rapper G-Eazy had two sold-out nights at The Wiltern as he toured behind his second album These Things Happen. Over the course of those two evenings, the young rapper brought out a venerable who’s who of the hip-hop community – from T.I. to Big Sean to Bay Area legend Too $hort.

A year later and G-Eazy was again headlining two sold-out nights in LA – this time at the much larger Shrine Expo Hall near USC. What was the 26-year-old from Oakland going to do to top his previous LA stint?

Click here to read the rest...

Billy Joel caps Bonnaroo with throwback Sunday set; Florence + The Machine wins fans over

Billy Joel caps Bonnaroo with throwback Sunday set; Florence + The Machine wins fans over
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
June 18, 2015

To be honest, Billy Joel was one of the main drawing points to attending my first ever Bonnaroo. In a time where there are seemingly endless music festivals, it gets harder and harder to land a legitimate festival headliner. Billy Joel fit the mold quite well, a legacy act and Rock n Roll Hall of Famer with a ridiculously deep catalog of tunes that appeal to all demographics.

With pretty much the entire 80,000 Bonnaroovians taking in his set as there was nothing going against it, Billy Joel ripped through a memorable set that put the energy back in people who had spent the previous four days in the humidity with precious few showers.

Click here to read the rest...

SXSW Saturday explodes with hip-hop: J. Cole, Too $hort, G-Eazy & more

SXSW Saturday explodes with hip-hop: J. Cole, Too $hort, G-Eazy & more
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
March 24, 2015

If Friday was the busiest day of SXSW for me, Saturday was the most intense. If you would have told me I’d end up seeing 39 performances and almost half of them would be hip hop or rap, I wouldn’t have believed it. But that’s what SXSW is partly about, broadening your horizons.

My day began with The Church at Waterloo Records. I remember hearing “Under the Milky Way” in Donnie Darko in middle school and loving that song. The rain began coming down again and they played an acoustic set, performing that hit and some newer stuff. Vocalist Steve Kilby sounded fantastic and there was a sizable crowd for it being just 2 PM.

Click here to read the rest...

Oakland's G-Eazy lights up Fox Theater Pomona, joined by Too $hort

Oakland's G-Eazy lights up Fox Theater Pomona, joined by Too $hort
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
January 8, 2015


After witnessing his performance Friday night at the Fox Theater in Pomona, one thing has become abundantly clear: Oakland rapper G-Eazy has arrived.

Beginning a tour that will return to L.A. with shows Feb. 3 and Feb. 4 at The Wiltern, G-Eazy put together a fantastic and memorable hour-and-a-half long set, with some help from his friends.

G-Eazy has built quite a cult following over the past few years. Students from Cal Poly SLO drove the few hours out for the show, as well as many from the Bay Area, where G-Eazy first started making his name. Security told me that people had been waiting since 1 p.m. to get the wristbands to get onto the main part of the floor, which was packed like sardines.

Click here to read the rest...

Life is Beautiful day two ruled by rap, balanced by Lionel Richie, and blown away by Flaming Lips

Life is Beautiful day two ruled by rap, balanced by Lionel Richie, and blown away by Flaming Lips
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
October 26, 2014


Outkast hadn’t played Las Vegas in more than a decade when they headlined Saturday’s Life is Beautiful smorgasbord on the second day of the downtown Las Vegas festival.

Outkast had made the festival rounds on their reunion this year, to mixed results. Their week one Coachella set was knocked for being a bit shaky, but their Saturday set in Las Vegas showed them at their best. The Atlanta duo went through their large array of hits without breaking off time for the weird Andre 3000 solo stuff that stunted their Coachella set.

Click here to read the rest...